Allison McGarrigle, a 40-year-old mother of three, was murdered in 1997 by two men she threatened to expose for sexually abusing a teenager. Her body has never been found, and the pair were jailed for life in 2010.
Disappearance and investigation
In the summer of 1997, Allison was living in Rothesay on the Isle of Bute after separating from her husband Robert. Around that time she vanished, and Robert later reported her missing to police.
Officers discovered that, shortly before her disappearance, she had moved into a flat in Largs, Ayrshire, with two men: 20-year-old William Lauchlan and his partner, a 34-year-old man who cannot be named for legal reasons. The three had previously been neighbours in Rothesay, but the two men had moved back to the mainland.
That same year, Lauchlan and his partner were jailed for six and eight years respectively for sexually abusing children. They had lured five boys aged between nine and 15 to a house in Skelmorlie, North Ayrshire, where they plied them with drugs and alcohol before molesting them.
Threats and witness accounts
After their imprisonment, both men were questioned about Allison's disappearance but refused to speak. Information then emerged from their victims, who said they were warned they would suffer the same fate as Allison if they told anyone about the abuse. There was talk of her having been "fed to the fishes."
Some said the two men had told them Allison was dumped in the sea. One fisherman later reported catching a wheelie bin with a foul smell in his nets off the coast of Largs, which he threw back into the water. Police believe this could have been Allison's remains.
Sea and land searches were carried out without success. By 2004, the pair had been released from prison but fled the country, breaching their parole conditions. They were spotted in Benidorm, Spain, and extradited back to Scotland to complete their sentences.
Charges and trial
A major review was launched that year, including a proof-of-life inquiry, involving all UK police forces, NHS boards, government departments, and organisations such as Women's Aid. In 2005, both men were formally charged with murdering Allison after she was officially declared dead, but charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence.
They were charged again in 2008 after a new probe called Operation Aspen. Officers from several Scottish forces built a timeline of the men's movements and found witnesses who had heard them hint at killing Allison. Further underwater and sonar searches were carried out, but prosecutors felt they had enough evidence to go to trial.
In May 2010, both men appeared at the High Court in Glasgow charged with Allison's murder. The jury was told how Allison had discovered the pair were abusing a teenager who lived with them and had threatened to tell police. On 20 June 1997, she told them: "I know what you are up to I will make sure I see what is coming to you." She went to bed that night but was gone the next morning, according to the abused teenager.
The pair were accused of killing Allison in the flat, putting her in an industrial-sized wheelie bin, taking it out on a boat, and dumping it in the sea. A witness said one accused told him at Barlinnie Prison in 1998 that Allison had been "done away with." Another man, met in Spain in 2004, was told she had been "got rid of" and "fed to the fishes."
Conviction and aftermath
Both men were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life. Lauchlan must serve 26 years before parole consideration, and his partner 30 years. They also received 10-year sentences for sexually abusing boys aged six and 14, of which they were found guilty in an earlier trial.
Trial judge Lord Pentland told the pair: "It is clear that you are both dangerous and determined predatory paedophiles and that you now represent a high risk to the safety of the public."
Allison's family said outside court: "Allison McGarrigle was a bubbly, happy woman with a heart of gold. She loved children and she was taken from us trying to protect a young boy from abuse."
Her remains have never been found, and the two men have never disclosed what they did with her body. New legislation in March this year, dubbed Suzanne's Law, means the Parole Board can consider a killer's refusal to disclose where a victim's body is. It remains to be seen whether this will persuade the two men to reveal their secret.
Former police detective John Sallens, involved in the original search and the investigations leading to the 2010 convictions, said: "Both are evil personified and both are particularly violent. If they are released these guys will commit the same crimes over and over again. They are a danger to children and society in general."
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Despite convictions for Allison McGarrigle’s murder, the fact that Allison’s body has never been found will be a source of great pain to her family. Any information that is received in relation to this will be assessed and acted on appropriately. We understand how devastating it is for families to never know what has happened to their loved ones and therefore we will continually review cases where the victim’s remains have not been found. Anyone with any information should contact Police Scotland on 101, or alternatively contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, where anonymity can be maintained."
